Long session addresses county requests

Wednesday

Sep 26, 2012 at 1:00 PM

In a three-hour work session Tuesday, St. Joseph County commissioners walked through requests from county-funded agencies in an attempt to whittle away $2 million of requests that are beyond the 2013 projected budget.

By Rosalie Curriercurrier@sturgisjournal.com

In a three-hour work session Tuesday, St. Joseph County commissioners walked through requests from county-funded agencies in an attempt to whittle away $2 million of requests that are beyond the 2013 projected budget.

Officials did not touch wages and fringe benefits, but assessed all capital requests with questions such as how necessary is it, how soon is it needed and is the price right?

The St. Joseph County Road Commission requested funds for bridge repair to become eligible for bridge funding from other levels of government.

Commissioners generally agreed the county roads and many bridges are in rough shape.

Parks and Recreation requested funding for a new Gator all-terrain utility vehicle. Some commissioners questioned the need, others said it was necessary.

But several commissioners who own all-terrain vehicles said the price quoted did not truly reflect a governmental discount as claimed, and they could personally buy the vehicle for the same price as the county could.

Commissioners also questioned the need for a top-of-the-line diesel Gator.

Commissioners discussed at length a request for a courtroom video upgrade and were mostly positive about the importance of updated equipment.

Commissioners approved a finance software request. Human resources director Elisha Arver went to bat for the finance department, saying the software was antiquated and ineffective. The requested upgrade would benefit the entire county, she said.

The county clerk requested funds to hire additional staff due to increased work loads. The board approved.

However, commissioners seek more information and questioned the need for costly aerial photographs every four or five years.

Commissioners asked for additional information about several requests from the prosecutor's office and one from the treasurer's office.

From the sheriff's department, a request for a Chevy Tahoe and squad cars in general were discussed at length.

The group spent extra time discussing a request for three new boats and trailers for lake patrol, at a cost of $12,350. Commissioner Robin Baker suggested that two for the 2013 season would be adequate.

Commissioners also wanted additional information regarding a sheriff's request for a $6,000 crash data retrieval system. Commissioner Robin Baker asked, how much does it help with a court case?

Eaton asked how many crashes typically occur in one year. Of those, how many cars have the sort of "black box" crash information in their air bag systems?

The county jail's request for a padded cell brought several questions, including, "Isn't that what medication is for?"; "Would a suicide jacket or restraining chair do the same thing?"; "If an inmate needed to be in a padded cell for any length of time, wouldn't they need to be moved to a mental hospital?"

Commissioners evaluated other needs at the sheriff's department and jail, including parking lot repair. Most commissioners agreed, but a request for paving of a service road behind the facility brought questions.